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Davis’ own poll shows him being shellacked by Emanuel and Alexi considering mayoral run

Thursday, Nov 11, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller

* You’ve undoubtedly read by now that a group of African-American leaders has chosen Congressman Danny Davis to be their standard-bearer in the mayor’s race.

But a poll commissioned by Davis himself, which for some reason he decided to circulate not long ago, actually shows he will have a very rough time against Rahm Emanuel if Davis manages to make it into the runoff. From Congressman Davis’ pollster…

Emanuel does well against Davis and Braun one-on-one, even when just looking at African-American voters and Hispanic voters. Emanuel received 45 percent of the African-American vote and 58 percent of the Hispanic vote, compared to 36 percent and 20 percent respectively for Davis. The numbers are similar one-on-one with Braun, but Braun does better with Hispanic voters.

This seems to be due to Emanuel’s name recognition and generally positive image. So, even if a coalition of African-American voters is possible, that does not guarantee success. However, there are a fair number of undecided voters so that adds another variable into the mix.”

If Rahm Emanuel gets 45 percent of the black vote against Davis in Davis’ own poll, then you have to wonder what he and that committee is thinking.

* And this has been going around for days. I’m not sure yet whether the labor poll actually exists, but there are some aldermen who cannot handle the idea of Rahm Emanuel for mayor and some of them are now turning to a guy who got almost 80 percent of the Chicago vote last week

Defeated U.S. Senate hopeful Alexi Giannoulias appears to be at least toying with the idea of running for mayor. But as per my post of Wednesday, I’m still not convinced it’s real or that he’s doing anything except listening to some flattery at a time when he could use some.

In an e-mail on his way back from a post-election vacation, Mr. Giannoulias confirmed chatter that “I have received a lot of calls from aldermen and donors that I was absolutely not expecting.” Reportedly included in that group are City Council graybeards Ed Burke (14th) and Dick Mell (33rd), who don’t much like the idea of taking orders from a Mayor Rahm Emanuel.

Mr. Giannoulias further confirmed that results of “a very strong (and flattering) poll” have been shown to him. Sources say the poll was conducted for a labor union and that it reportedly shows Mr. Giannoulias running six or seven points ahead of Mr. Emanuel.

“Does that mean that I’m running for mayor? No,” Mr. Giannoulias continued in his e-mail. “Is it stupid for me to say no, unequivocally, without even listening? Not sure yet.”

Thoughts?

  61 Comments      


Tenaska’s Taylorville Energy Center MYTHBUSTERS

Thursday, Nov 11, 2010 - Posted by Capitol Fax Blog Advertising Department

[The following is a paid advertisement.]

Part 1, Electric Rates.

Myth: Taylorville will put an “enormous economic burden” on consumers

Fact: The Clean Coal Portfolio Standard caps residential rate increases at 2.015%, or $1.67/month, according to the ICC.

Myth: Taylorville means rate increases now, when we can least afford it

Fact: Between now and 2015, the project will invest billions in Illinois, employ nearly 2,500 construction workers and purchase supplies from all corners of the state. The cost to ratepayers between now and 2015? ZERO. NOTHING. ZILCH.

Myth: Taylorville will dramatically increase electric rates for large business customers

Fact: Big business customers currently pay 40.5% less for electricity than residential and small business consumers. Even under their worst case scenario, large customers would still pay 37.1% less.

Myth: Illinois has plenty of electricity. No new plants are needed.

Fact: As Crain’s and others have reported, environmental regulations are expected to force 25-40% of Illinois coal plants to shut down by 2020. Since Illinois still relies on coal for half of our electricity, less supply and more demand means higher electric rates if cleaner supplies of reliable electricity, like Taylorville, are not built. And who benefits from that?

SAY YES TO TENASKA’S TAYLORVILLE ENERGY CENTER!

Learn the facts. For more information, visit cleancoalillinois.com

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Question of the day

Thursday, Nov 11, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller

* From Gallup

Americans think it is generally more important for political leaders to compromise to get things done (47%) rather than sticking to their beliefs (27%), but Republicans and Democrats hold differing views on the matter.

Republicans tilt more toward saying leaders should stick to their beliefs (41% to 32%), while Democrats more widely endorse compromise (by 59% to 18%).

Gallup used a 1 through 5 rating system, where “1″ meant it is more important for political leaders to “compromise in order to get things done,” while “5″ meant it is more important for political leaders to “stick to their beliefs even if little gets done.”

* The Question: Based on that 1-5 rating system, where do you stand? Explain.

  23 Comments      


Time to face reality

Thursday, Nov 11, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Gov. Pat Quinn should listen to Mayor Daley

Mayor Richard Daley [yesterday] suggested state government leaders should focus on cutting costs before raising taxes.

“First of all, you have to show the intent that you cut off waste, inefficiency, fraud, everything else,” Daley said. “So, they have to really show that. So, it’s up to them. You can’t just tell people, like here, I’m just going to raise taxes. You’d be thrown right out of City Hall. They want you to cut expenses, cut waste, inefficiency, reorganize and get a bank for the buck. That’s what they want. Simple as that.”

The mayor’s remarks came after Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn’s claim that he has a mandate to raise the income tax after campaigning on a tax-hike pledge and prevailing in last week’s governor election.

Quinn’s response? Not heartening…

At an unrelated news conference [yesterday], Quinn said he’s confident a tax increase will pass.

“I think members of the legislature need to have a rendezvous with reality. That’s what I would say. We’ve got to do what’s best for Illinois. The election’s over. It was over last week. So now it’s time to roll up our sleeves and work hard on what’s necessary for the people,” the governor said.

Quinn’s tax increase alone will barely make a dent in the state’s deficit, so he’s going to have to cut anyway. He might as well come up with at least a partial plan now. Earlier this week, all he could point to was eliminating the legislative scholarship plan. Yeah. That’ll help pass this tax hike. Watch


A win is a win and Quinn won the election. But that doesn’t make him dictator. He can’t pass his tax hike by fiat. And he can’t wish away this budget deficit, either.

  49 Comments      


How about we band together and try to take the lead on something for a change?

Thursday, Nov 11, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller

* One of the things that Gov. Pat Quinn gets right is his vocal support for alternative energy. And Illinois is at the center of wind power partly because of his work.

The Environmental Law and Policy Center has produced a new study identifying over 100 Illinois companies with 15,000 employees active in the “wind power supply chain.” The group also estimates that 17 manufacturing jobs are created for every megawatt of power developed. That means 2,500 jobs for a 150 megawatt utility-scaled wind farm.

* The state now has 25 wind farms. Chicago is home to 13 major wind power company corporate headquarters. Here are just a few

Acciona, a $7 billion Spanish-based multinational corporation, develops and manages clean energy projects, operates a turbine assembly and has its North American headquarters in Chicago. Acciona has ownership interests in seven North American wind farms.

Invenergy has its global headquarters Chicago and it develops, owns and operates large scale renewable energy facilities in North America and Europe. The company has developed twenty U.S. wind farms, two of which are in Illinois, making it one of the nation’s largest independent wind energy producers.

Midwest Wind Energy, headquartered in Chicago, is a utility-scale wind farm developer, with a current project portfolio of over 5,000 megawatts of power in Illinois and the Midwest.

Naperville’s BroadWind Energy headquarters recently got a writeup in the local paper

Naperville’s Broadwind Energy is a wind-industry holding company with four businesses: logistics, technical and engineering services, turbine tower construction and precision gearing systems manufacturing.

“We make the towers that the turbines go on and manufacture the gears that go in the gear boxes, and we also have a service business that maintains the turbines,” said Broadwind spokesman John Segvich on Tuesday.

According to Segvich, Broadwind began in 2006 in Manitowoc, Wis., and moved to Naperville in March 2008. The 800-person company serves wind farm developers and operators throughout the United States. While Naperville is its corporate headquarters, Broadwind operates a gear-manufacturing plant in Cicero and a turbine plant in Texas.

“The services business is pretty much where the customers need them,” Segvich said, adding that the company chose to move to Naperville to be near a major international business center.

“The wind players are here in Chicago,” he said.

Another business snagged from the cheeseheads.

All those headquarters need lawyers, CPAs, caterers, programmers, insurance, public relations specialists, and on and on and on.

* But there’s also a more direct benefit. A. Finkl & Sons is gearing up to supply the industry with high grade steel for turbines. Winergy Drive Systems, a division of Siemens, just opened its second turbine production facility in Elgin. The company employs 500 Illinoisans. There’s lots more. Read the report.

* This is clearly a growth industry for Illinois, and the state needs to do even more. A new state law that allows school districts to cut deals with wind farm companies is starting to pay dividends for districts like Warrensburg-Latham, which is near Decatur

Emmett Aubry was tired of hearing complaints about the wind and decided to find a way to put it to good use.

Aubry, the Warrensburg-Latham schools superintendent, told those at the Greater Decatur Chamber of Commerce Ag Café luncheon Monday that what he found could help not only the school district but provide a boost to the area’s economy.

“When you come to Warrensburg for a football game at the high school, it will blow you off the hill top,” Aubry said. “We griped about it a lot.”

A nearly $400 million wind farm is planned for 10,000 acres of leased land outside Warrensburg, Aubry said. The school district sits on what would be the northeast corner of the farm, he said. […]

The project would create 300 construction jobs and 22 permanent jobs, Aubry said. Many of the workers would be trained in a newly-developed wind technician training program at Richland Community College in Decatur.

* What about price? There is an argument that the price differential between wind and what we have now is just too great. But Illinois Wind Daily (yes, there is such a publication) makes a good point

An article in this weekend’s New York Times highlights an interesting hurdle facing the wind industry during the current economic crisis: state utility commissions are viewing renewable power supply contracts as too expensive in comparison to standard power supply contracts. This issue has been problematic for wind projects in Illinois and other states, but could be a short-sighted perspective because power prices are now at historic lows.

They’re low because of the recession. They’ll eventually go back up again, but this wind industry opportunity will be gone by then if we lay back now.

* And as long as the market is out there, we need to not only stay in the game, but lead it and help pave the way. For instance, people tend to believe they “own” the sightlines from their property. That’s pretty silly, but it seems to be a natural inclination. I know I can feel the same way. But too often, a tiny handful of rural neighbors are allowed to stop or greatly slow down wind farm projects

The [Marshall County] board’s approval came over the objections of several residents who live in the area where the 16 turbines will be located. Rebecca Donna, an Illinois Valley Community College professor who also had objected at an earlier Zoning Board of Appeals hearing, said the turbines will reduce quality of life and property values for residents not involved in the project.

“There are 31 residents (in that category),” Donna said. “I know that’s not a lot of people, but I think the county should consider those people. It will very negatively impact our lives.”

* What we also don’t need is for ComEd to continue dragging its feet. The company has so far prevented a bill from passing that would extend a provision in state law that only allows the company to apply only renewable energy sources from Illinois to its minimum alternative energy mandate. ComEd wants to import wind-generated power from out of state instead. Legislators need to be for Illinois jobs, not utility games. If this bill isn’t properly drafted, then the players need to come up with a new one. But soon. As with everything else, we’re in competition with other states and other countries in this industry.

We have lots of coal here, and clean coal technology needs to be invested in as well. Environmental regulations are trending harshly against coal these days, so we can either do nothing and stick with the old technology and be left behind (once again), or kick it up ten notches and get out in front of the changes coming our way, whether we like it or not.

[Hat Tip: Progress Illinois and Illinois Wind Daily.]

  33 Comments      


Gov. Quinn plays hardball with the cheeseheads

Thursday, Nov 11, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Now, this is what I call aggressive business recruitment

Gov. Pat Quinn says a Wisconsin trainmaker is welcome to move its jobs to Illinois.

Quinn is inviting Talgo Inc. to come to the state after Wisconsin’s newly elected Republican governor said he wanted to give back federal money for a proposed high-speed rail project or use it for something else.

Quinn sent a letter to the Milwaukee company Wednesday. He says Illinois will do whatever it can to lure them.

* The company is interested in moving here

A Spanish-owned train company would seriously consider moving its plant from Milwaukee to Illinois in 2012 if Governor-elect Scott Walker follows through on his vow to kill a planned high-speed rail line, a company executive said Wednesday night. […]

“If Wisconsin is losing its enthusiasm for its rail program and others are not, we could go to Illinois and manufacture world-class trains there,” said Nora Friend, Talgo vice president for public affairs and business development. “We certainly appreciate Gov. Quinn reaching out to us. We will consider very seriously states that want to grow their rail program.”

* The federal government has allocated $810 million to Wisconsin to build the high-speed train line. Gov. Quinn had this to say several days ago about the Wisconsin governor-elect’s campaign promise to halt the Milwaukee to Chicago project

I just heard from Ray LaHood today, he called and said, ‘Well, Wisconsin might not want the money for high speed rail.’ We’re here, here we are. We’ll be happy to take it. You know, anything we can grab hold of

* Governor-elect Walker wants to use the money for roads instead, but Transportation Secretary LaHood has said they can’t, and it doesn’t look like Wisconsin will have a legal leg to stand on

Walker, meanwhile, made another pitch to use the stimulus money for roads instead. He wrote U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, saying that voters across the country chose new governors who are against using transportation money for passenger trains. And the Republican Walker said, quote, “I believe it would be unwise for the Obama administration to ignore the will of the voters.” LaHood said on Monday that the $810-million would have to be spent on trains – or else it would go to another state for its trains.

But House Republican Tom Petri of Fond du Lac said Congress probably wouldn’t be much help to Walker. He said the law would have to be changed to use the money for roads – and states like Illinois that want the train funding would never vote for that. Walker is against having Wisconsin pay the train’s operating costs once its built.

From Secretary LaHood’s letter

“None of the money provided to Wisconsin may be used for road and highway projects, or anything other than high-speed rail. Consequently, unless you change your position, we plan to engage in an orderly transition to wind down Wisconsin’s project so that we do not waste taxpayers’ money,” wrote LaHood.

Oof.

* And despite potentially losing jobs and nearly a billion dollars in transportation money, the Wisconsin governor-elect is not backing down

“Gov.-elect Scott Walker is going to fulfill his campaign promise to stop the construction of the Madison-Milwaukee train line,” Walker spokesman John Hiller said in a statement. “He will also fulfill his campaign promise to create an economic environment that allows the private-sector to create 250,000 new jobs.”

Yeah, well, that Wisconsin project would’ve created 5,500 construction jobs over the next three years. And then there are all those Talgo jobs.

* And then there’s this

If Illinois receives the money, it could “add insult to injury” because Wisconsinites would still be burdened with the Illinois tolls while traveling to Chicago, but the toll payoffs would not be returned, [Jay Heck, executive director for Common Cause in Wisconsin] said.

  59 Comments      


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Wednesday, Nov 10, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller

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Americans for Prosperity promotes big lie and Edgar kicks Brady when he’s down

Wednesday, Nov 10, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Americans for Prosperity is jumping into the non-fray over seating Mark Kirk now with an online petition

Mark Kirk won two elections to the U.S. Senate on November 2. He won an election to a full 6-year term, and he also won a SPECIAL ELECTION to fill the final two months of President Obama’s unexpired term. The special election is critical because Congress is considering a sweeping lame duck agenda that will include decisions on tax hikes for all Americans, the first vote on funding ObamaCare, and potentially dozens of other hugely consequential issues.

Mark Kirk campaigned as a LAME DUCK KILLER and won his election on a promise to stop Pelosi/Reid lame duck agenda. He won. Now, unlike the two Democrats who won special elections in West Virginia and Delaware, there is a chance that Kirk will not be seated. EVEN THOUGH he won a special election SPECIFICALLY for the lame duck session, state officials are saying he will not be certified until more than a week after the lame duck session starts. That’s not right.

Sign the petition. Don’t cheat! Give Kirk his seat!

PETITION TO BOARD OF ELECTIONS EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR DANIEL WHITE, GOVERNOR PAT QUINN, SECRETARY OF STATE JESSE WHITE:
Mark Kirk won a special election for the lame duck. His opponent conceded. We demand you certify the result and issue his writ of election immediately.

PETITION TO SECRETARY OF THE SENATE NANCY ERICKSON, SENATE MAJORITY LEADER HARRY REID, SENATE MINORITY LEADER MITCH MCCONNELL:
Roland Burris is not a senator. An election having now duly qualified Mark Kirk to complete President Obama’s unexpired term, Senator Kirk should be seated immediately and he, not Mr. Burris, should represent Illinois in the lame duck session.

* Let’s go through this goofy petition piece by piece, shall we?

1) Kirk did not win a term to fill all of the remaining days of Obama’s unexpired term. A federal judge and the appellate court ruled that the state board of elections must certify the winner by November 24th. Under that late July federal judicial order, whoever won the special election would miss the first week of the lame duck session.

2) Alexi Giannoulias’ concession holds zero legal weight.

3) Unless Americans for Prosperity wants the Illinois State Board of Elections to violate probably two dozen state and federal laws, it cannot certify this election for Mark Kirk. The ballots are not all counted yet (see the Republican counties of Lake and McHenry for just two examples). Some military ballots may not have arrived in the counties yet. Does AFP want to deprive armed forces members of their right to vote? Just a few weeks ago, the Illinois Republican Party wanted to extend the time period to count those ballots and threatened to file a lawsuit. Now, it’s patriotic to not count them? Huh? I’m getting whiplash here. The official state canvass does not begin until next Wednesday, after the deadline for receiving and counting absentee ballots ends. This is a big state. That takes a while.

4) Unless Roland Burris decides to step down, he is most definitely a Senator until Mark Kirk is sworn in. The red herring of West Virginia and Delaware does not apply here. There is no vacancy here. That’s due to both Burris and the federal judicial decree. There is simply no seat for Mark Kirk to take.

Even Tom Roeser kinda/sorta admitted error today. AFP has vast sums of cash and, presumably, staff. You’d think they would know better. But the Washington Examiner wants the Senate Republicans to use this non-issue as an excuse to filibuster everything next week. Thankfully, Drudge is too focused today on groped stewardesses to take notice, or Fox News would surely jump in with both Right feet.

* Speaking of things we should ignore

Former Illinois Gov. Jim Edgar says Republican Bill Brady lost the governorship in last week’s election because he was ultimately too conservative for Illinois.

Speaking at a post-election forum in Springfield, Edgar said Republicans missed an opportunity to seize the state’s top office on Nov. 2.

Edgar, who was governor from 1991 to 1999, says while it was a good night for the GOP in that the party gained seats in the Legislature and two statewide office. However, he doesn’t think the party is back in Illinois.

And

“To me, there’s only one election – that’s governor. … We kind of missed our opportunity,” said Edgar, a Republican who served two terms as governor from 1991 to 1999. “We should have won the governorship.”

If this was so important, you’d think maybe Edgar would’ve been out there campaigning for Brady. Maybe appearing in the ‘burbs and calming down moderate women. Then again, to my knowledge, Brady’s campaign never asked him to do that or cut a TV ad. That could’ve helped in the suburbs.

  77 Comments      


Quinn cool on gaming, but will he change his mind?

Wednesday, Nov 10, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Gov. Pat Quinn talks about casino expansion and slots at tracks

“You can’t gamble your way to prosperity,” Quinn said. “I think we have to understand in Illinois that we have some gambling. But do we want to expand it and make Illinois the Las Vegas of the Midwest? Not in my opinion.”

He’s right that we can’t gamble our way to prosperity. But I don’t think anyone is talking about making Illinois “the Las Vegas of the Midwest.” What they’re talking about is adding four new casinos, one in Lake County, one in Chicago, one in southern Cook and one in Danville, plus slots at tracks. Las Vegas has 1,701 casinos. We’d need to do a whole lot more expanding to get to that level.

* Sen. Mike Jacobs makes sense

“I think it’s kind of wrong that we haven’t let Chicago have the same (gambling) benefit that my community enjoys. The [Quad Cities] has three casino boats and Chicago doesn’t have any.”

Jacobs was referring to Iowa boats in his calculation, but it’s still true. And it seems a bit silly to me that the Quads have three boats and Chicago has zero. It also seems ludicrous that we’re allowing all those south suburban people to stream across the Indiana border to hand over their gambling losses to the Hoosiers.

* So, will Quinn change his mind? Sen. Syverson also makes sense

State Sen. Dave Syverson, R-Rockford, howeverm said he doesn’t think Quinn’s position will matter — or stay the same.

“He will change his mind like he does on pretty much everything,” Syverson said. “The idea that a new lotto game is somehow better than more gambling is just silly.”

* From a press release…

Governor Pat Quinn [yesterday] unveiled the new Veterans Cash lottery ticket, a scratch-off ticket that benefits Illinois Veterans. All proceeds from the ticket go to fund rehabilitative programs and other services for Illinois’ Veterans. Since Governor Quinn championed the program in 2006, it has generated more than $8.4 million for Veterans organizations across the state.

“With Veterans’ Day coming up on Thursday, it is important that we honor the men and women who have answered the call to serve their country,” said Governor Quinn. “It is important that we do everything we can to make sure returning Veterans have access to rehabilitation programs and other important services. I encourage all Illinois residents to buy the new Veterans Cash ticket and support our Veterans.”

Anyone else see the irony in that quote?

* Look, gambling is not exactly popular. And I, for one, am not fully comfortable with the government being an active participant in a scam. And make no mistake, gambling is a scam (for everyone but my wife, that is, who always wins). They don’t build those fabulous casinos because they lose. It’s a tax on people who can’t do math. But it’s an almost purely voluntary tax. Nobody forces anybody to go to those casinos.

I also don’t think adding four casinos and slots at tracks puts us on any sort of slippery slope to becoming the next Vegas. We’ve had boats for twenty years and there are only ten licenses, and it took years to find a home for that tenth license. Any expansion takes a huge effort. And expansion attempts fail about 99 percent of the time. It’s been a decade since the last one.

* There are also real concerns that more gaming could mean less consumer purchasing here. And considering the lack of current retail demand in our economy, that question should be addressed. All in all, though, governing is inherently a balancing act. If new casinos do little real damage and help us balance the budget a bit without new taxes, then the scale tips in their direction.

Some have real moral qualms. But Illinois is hardly Sodom and Gomorrah, and neither is Iowa, Missouri or Indiana, the three states we compete with.

What we need is some sober, rational analysis and thought, not bizarre scare tactics by a petulant governor who demands that the General Assembly pass his tax increase before they do anything else.

* Meanwhile, Comptroller-elect Judy Baar Topinka and Treasurer-elect Dan Rutherford have a warning for Gov. Quinn. No short-term borrowing unless they believe it’s a decent plan that the state can afford

Quinn has called borrowing one of his “budget pillars.” But state law requires both the state treasurer and comptroller to sign-off on short term borrowing in Illinois. Topinka said that means she’d better get answers to her questions.

“I have a number of questions about any type of short term borrowing,” she said. “What will the money be used for, how long will it be out, and is there money for the state to pay it back?”

Topinka vowed she won’t be issuing any blank checks to the governor. Rutherford has the same criteria as Topinka when it comes to borrowing. And he thinks he has a mandate to be tough. […]

Rutherford said that not all borrowing is bad, but he does worry about Illinois’ mounting debt and the state’s ability to repay what it borrows. […]

“If [the borrowing plan] is something that makes sense, there’s a means to pay it back, we understand where the money is going to go to, is there a revenue stream, all of those, I’m willing to look at it. I’m not going to be an obstructionist just to be an obstructionist,” added Rutherford.

* Related…

* Quinn calls for Madigan, Cullerton to approve tax increase

* Lame duck Daley keeps mum on Quinn’s tax plan

* News-Gazette: Quinn has chance for a new start

* Illinois tallies tax amnesty receipts

* Kadner: Gambling bill coming but problems remain

* Illinois Plans $1.5 Billion Tobacco Bond for Budget

* LaHood to states: Proceed with rail projects or give up stimulus funds

  45 Comments      


Question of the day

Wednesday, Nov 10, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller

* A quote by Robert Gilligan, the executive director of the Catholic Conference of Illinois

“Civil unions, for all intents and purposes, are practically the same as same-sex marriage,” said Gilligan, whose group is among five religious-based or socially conservative organizations against the legislation

The legislation in question is a bill to provide for civil unions in Illinois. The Sun-Times editorialized on behalf of the bill today.

* The Question: Regardless of how you feel about civil unions and gay marriage and even gay rights, is Mr. Gilligan correct when he says that civil unions and gay marriage are “practically the same,” or are there significant differences that ought to be recognized by the General Assembly? Explain.

Again, let’s not debate the merits of the bill here. Let’s try to only stick to Gilligan’s statement.

  50 Comments      


Bean needs a miracle, while Walsh vows to fend off attempts to “steal” election

Wednesday, Nov 10, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller

* The only thing that will save Congresswoman Melissa Bean is a miracle.

Lake and McHenry counties won’t even start counting late-arriving absentee ballots until next Tuesday the 16th, which is the statutory deadline. From Lake County’s website

All tallies from Provisional and late-arriving ballots voted by mail are reported 14 days after Election Day when the election results become final. The official canvass of the results occurs the following day.

This, by the way, is yet another reason why the state cannot certify Mark Kirk’s election.

Anyway, back to Bean. With Cook County’s absentee results mostly in, Bean trails Republican Joe Walsh by 347 votes. That’s down from her 553-vote deficit late last week before Cook started counting late absentees, but it isn’t nearly enough. She picked up just three votes on Walsh yesterday in Cook, which has now stopped counting until next Tuesday as well.

And keep in mind that Bean actually won suburban Cook County 54-43. She lost Lake County 50-47 and got stomped in McHenry 52-43.

It’s likely that a higher percentage of Democrats voted by mail in those counties than voted on election day, partly because of the Democrats’ coordinated committee efforts. But that difference will have to be truly vast for Bean to catch up or even get close enough to realistically expect that a recount will make much of a difference

About 500 absentee ballots remain unaccounted for in Cook County, election officials said, though the likelihood they will be returned with a valid postmark date drops by the day.

Another 216 provisional ballots could also be counted into the total, though only between 20 and 25 percent of those votes are usually ruled valid, said Courtney Greve, the clerk’s office spokeswoman.

Lake County has received 599 valid absentee ballots that will be counted, and several hundred more provisional ballots likely will be counted into the total, said County Clerk Willard Helander. McHenry County Clerk Katherine Schultz said she expects her county to contribute a few dozen votes.

The Cook “unaccounted for” line is a bit vague. The county mailed out 500 more absentee ballots than they’ve so far received back. Some will never be sent. The ones that are sent in will likely be postmarked after last Monday’s deadline.

* In the meantime, Joe Walsh is heading to DC for freshman orientation. He appears to have earned that right. But, as usual, he went over the top in a message to supporters…

Rest assured as well, that we are diligently prepared to defend against any attempt to steal last week’s victory away from us. We won’t let that happen.

…Adding… From Bean’s campaign…

“Every single day that ballots have been counted following Election Day, the margin of votes separating Congresswoman Melissa Bean and Mr. Walsh has continued to shrink. Now, more than ever, this race remains too close to call. While we wait for additional ballots to be counted, we remain encouraged by the favorable results we’ve seen in suburban Cook County. In fact, nearly 70 percent of the absentee ballots counted since Election Day in Cook County were cast in support of Congresswoman Bean, which suggests that similar absentee numbers will be reported in Lake and McHenry between now and November 16th.”

It suggests nothing of the sort since she won Cook County.

* Related…

* Rep. Shimkus aims to be House Energy and Commerce chairman: One other more-senior member is likely to chair the panel’s subcommittee on telecommunications, so the real contest is between Rep. Fred Upton of Michigan, who has served in Congress since 1987, and Mr. Shimkus, who was first elected a decade later. Conservative groups recently started a campaign to block Mr. Upton, citing his voting record going back to the 1990s, according to Politico, a Capitol Hill publication.

* ‘The planet won’t be destroyed by global warming because God promised Noah,’ says politician bidding to chair U.S. energy committee

  31 Comments      


Kankakee has a lesson for the city

Wednesday, Nov 10, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller

* I was born in Kankakee. Like many small cities, Kankakee installed parking meters downtown decades ago to generate revenue and prevent people from parking too long in front of stores. And, like many small cities, Kankakee’s downtown quickly went to pot. It didn’t take long before they had no more stores. Some Chicago businesses are now starting to freak out about what could happen to them

Along Touhy between Francisco and Sacramento avenues, there had always been free street parking. But, suddenly without warning, a pay box appeared on Oct. 31.

Michael Ben-Ezra owns the North Shore Bakery at 2919 W. Touhy Ave. Last week, the first week with the pay box, he says his business was down 30 percent.

“You know, the customer comes in to buy a sweet roll or something, They walk in for 10 minutes” and have to pay or risk a $50 ticket.”

He says, with the pay boxes, the city is driving businesses away. He points to the next block which has had metered parking all along it and more than half the storefronts are empty.

That’s an excellent point. For shops which sell low-priced items like sweet rolls, who’s gonna pay through the nose to park? And get this response from the alderman…

As for the businesses along Touhy, Alderman Stone says they’ve been lucky until now to have no meters. Now, their luck has run out.

Such empathy.

* Parking meters alone didn’t destroy Kankakee’s downtown. Shoppers’ preferences shifted to malls. But the town’s oldtimers are still upset at the way those meters were installed, and that’s been maybe 40 years ago. So if Kankakee is any guide, then this is not an issue that will ever go away in Chicago.

And the way the contract is written, those meters will continue to spread throughout the city. The company will have two ways to increase revenues, jack up parking rates or install new meters. It’s not gonna be pretty either way, and it’s going to be both ways.

I don’t think many people care about the meters in the Loop. You can actually find street parking at times now. But the Loop is essential. People have to go there. They don’t necessarily have to stop in for quick roll at North Shore Bakery on Touhy, although in my view it’s an excellent place to find tasty treats.

* I derided the study conducted last year which found that Chicago could’ve made more money if it had just raised parking rates itself without contracting it out to a private firm. The fatal flaw with the study, I wrote, was that aldermen would either never have been so foolish as to raise the rates and vastly expand meter placement themselves, or they would’ve been forced to instantly annul the ordinance once the public figured out what happened.

But by going this privatization route and by spending pretty much all the company’s money up front, the city is now stuck. What it needs to do now is figure out how to get itself out of this contract or drastically modify it or little Kankakees are gonna sprout up all over the neighborhoods. And, take it from a Kankakee native, that’s not a good thing.

  31 Comments      


Morning shorts

Wednesday, Nov 10, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Tribune Co. asks court to approve $43M in bonuses

* Hiring remains slow even as economy picks up

* Chicago Public Schools sees $700 mil. deficit next year

* Estimate of corn crop lowered again

* A third of Chicago-area homes underwater

* Congressmen pay wives from campaign funds

* Panel approves TIF for company’s 650-job expansion downtown

* Shrink City Council committees, alderman says

* Daley takes credit for fire department audit’s findings

* Preckwinkle seeking help from Stroger administration

* Why Preckwinkle plan to save $55 million a year might not work

* Even Toni Preckwinkle has health insurance worries

* Tinley Park enjoys budget surplus at mid-fiscal year

* Aurora police union speaks out on budget cuts

* Arlington Hts. plans tax increases

* Stengren: 20 years on Arlington Hts. board is enough

* Three vie to replace Morthland on R.I. County Board

* Peoria council considers more budget cuts

* Peoria Budget Deficit Reduced

* Sangamon County board approves budget including raises, layoffs

* Sangamon County Board Passes $95 Million Budget, Only Funding Coroner’s Office Six Months

* SJ-R: Take cautious budget course

* Champaign council begins work on long-term plan for city’s development

* District to explore possible sales tax

* Mike Neill will fill Carbondale City Council vacancy

  7 Comments      


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Wednesday, Nov 10, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller

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*** UPDATED x1 - Gingrich takes the bait *** Another phony “controversy” has the Interwebtubes in a tizzy

Tuesday, Nov 9, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Check out the right-leaning blogs today and you’ll see a huge number of posts that more than just suggest the Democrats are plotting to deny Republican Mark Kirk his rightful place in the US Senate. A representative sample…

* Illinois: We can’t certify Mark Kirk’s win until after Thanksgiving because of “paperwork”: And yet, despite there being zero doubt as to who won, “paperwork” means Kirk won’t join the Senate until late November at the earliest. I’m not sure which is worse — the thought that Illinois Democrats are purposely dragging their feet to keep Kirk out of the chamber so that he can’t block lame-duck Democratic legislation or the thought that they’re not dragging their feet and this really is the fastest they can move.

* Surprise: Illinois “Paperwork” Backlog Delays Seating Mark Kirk Prior to Senate Lame Duck Session

* Mark Kirk stopped from taking Senate Seat to give Burris power to vote on Lame Duck Agenda: Despite the voice of the people in this pivotal race, the democratic party machine that runs Illinois is attempting to hold up Kirk’s appointment to the Senate seat so that Roland Burris, never elected, appointed by Rod Blagojevich, can help Barack Obama pass his agenda to fundamentally transform America.

* OUTRAGE: Illinois Demorats Delay Seating Sen. Kirk: The state says they cannot seat him until after Thanksgiving due to paperwork. Yeah, riiiiight. And that even though Kirk won by more the 70,000 votes and his opponent has graciously conceded.

* What Arrant Squid Nonsense: Illinois State “Paperwork” to Delay Kirk’s Swearing in Until Dec. 3—Keeping Unelected Dem Burris in the Senate!: Ha-ha-ho-ho…how very coincidental. This is the Dems’ way of ratifying the new Obama-proclaimed era of cooperation. And the spineless media will find oodles of justification for this Squid-manufactured atrocity.

* Shocker: Illinois Dragging Feet On Certifying Election Of Republican Senator

* A Great Example of What I Hate About Democrats

Whew! That’s a lot of yucky bile. And that handful of posts barely skims the surface of the indignant blogtastic outrage.

And, by the way, it’s all completely false.

* All the hoo-ha is based on a fatally flawed AP brief

Illinois Republican Mark Kirk won’t be seated in the U.S. Senate in time for the start of the lame duck session of Congress this month - unlike two other newly elected senators.

The session begins Nov. 15. But state officials say the paperwork officially declaring Kirk the winner of the Senate race won’t be delivered until Nov. 29.

That should still allow Kirk to participate in two weeks of the session in December.

* OK, first of all, way back in July the judge who ordered the special election gave the Illinois State Board of Elections until November 24th to certify the special. This schedule has been in place a very long time, before anyone knew that Kirk would be elected.

* Secondly, the Illinois State Board of Elections actually plans to certify the election a day early, according to an official I just spoke with. They’re gonna do it on the 23rd, not the 24th.

* Thirdly, the Senate is recessing its lame duck session during the entire week of the 23rd because of Thanksgiving. The Senate won’t restart the session until November 29th.

* And fourthly - and most importantly - Secretary of State Jesse White’s office claims the AP misquoted them. What they said was they intend to process the paperwork immediately and will make sure that it gets into the hands of the proper DC authorities in plenty of time for the first day of the restarted lame duck session on the 29th. Between the 23rd and the 29th lies Thanksgiving, remember. Things can happen. That’s why they stressed they want to make extra special sure that Kirk is sworn in on or before the 29th.

* So, to sum up, the schedule that was set way back in July is still on track. The State Board of Elections is actually pushing up the ordered date by a full day. The AP screwed up. The SoS will expedite matters. Mark Kirk will be sworn in by the time the Senate reconvenes on Monday, November 29th.

Also, I’m not sure where Tom Roeser found that December 3rd date, but he’s way off.

*** UPDATE *** And right on schedule, WLS allows Newt Gingrich to push this phony story into the bloodstream

Gingrich said the move to seat Democrats Chris Coons of Delaware and Joe Manchin of West Virginia, and not Kirk was a prime example of a “really corrupt machine style.”

“That is such an outrageously corrupt and dishonest position that even Harry Reid ought to be ashamed of himself,” Gingrich said.

Gingrich called on the entire country, including President Barack Obama, to bring pressure on the Democratic Party to act honorably and seat Kirk immediately.

“The president could certainly intervene and say to the Senate Democrats and say to the Illinois secretary of state, ‘we need to play fair and we need to honor the American people,’ Gingrich said.

Gingrich called the delay in seating Kirk “much worse” than the machinations involving the seat of former Massachusetts Senator Ted Kennedy.

Sheesh.

  49 Comments      


*** UPDATED x1 Madigan suggests another way *** A look ahead

Tuesday, Nov 9, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller

*** UPDATE *** House Speaker Michael Madigan is throwing a bit of cold water on all this “mandate” talk by Gov. Quinn

“If (the governor) has a mandate, it’s not a real strong mandate,” Mr. Madigan said, perhaps referring to near-solid opposition from Springfield Republicans to any tax hike without big spending cuts first.

But then Madigan went on to lay out how the governor might improve his tax package…

The way “is not only an increase in the tax for education funding,” as Mr. Quinn most recently has proposed. Rather, “my suggestion: Illinois has a severe budget deficit problem. The immediate need is bad. And the need is to pay the bills.”

Even with tax-producing economic growth and/or a modest income tax increase — Mr. Madigan didn’t mention a specific figure — it will take “three to five years to work out of our problem,” he said. The state’s cumulate budget hole is about $14 billion, according to state officials and watchdog groups.

“All we heard about in the campaign is that Illinois is running a big budget deficit,” Mr. Madigan concluded, returning to his main point. “We need to pay the bills.”

And that means a one percentage point income tax hike won’t be nearly enough.

[ *** End Of Update *** ]

* Unlike others, I believe that Gov. Pat Quinn has at least some right to claim a limited mandate from last Tuesday. How many people ran for governor this year promising to increase income taxes and still won? I think he’s probably the only one. That took guts and he prevailed.

But the governor does not have the right to misstate the facts

Quinn believes his win is a mandate for an income tax increase.

“I think that’s absolutely true,” Quinn said Friday. “The people understood my position and they voted for me. The majority carried the day. We’ll have to get more revenue to get Illinois to a better place.”

The “majority” voted for someone else, governor. Also, Bill Brady, Scott Lee Cohen and Lex Green all flatly opposed a tax hike. Total up their numbers and you get 51 percent.

Words matter, governor.

* Meanwhile, this free rides for seniors debacle is almost a perfect microcosm for how screwed up our politics have been in this state

Offering little hope of new funding for buses and trains in the Chicago region, the state’s top legislative leaders from both parties agreed Monday on one point — free rides for senior citizens must be curtailed. […]

House Speaker Michael Madigan, D-Chicago, said he expects the General Assembly will roll back the free transit rides for seniors that former Gov. Rod Blagojevich insisted on in exchange for his support of a small sales-tax increase for mass transit in 2008.

“My expectation is that eventually we will go back to a system where those who are needy are the ones who get consideration on the fares on mass transit,'’ Madigan said at the fourth annual William Lipinski transportation policy symposium at Northwestern University.

Madigan’s key word there is “eventually.” That could mean next year, it could mean in 20 years. The longer the program remains in place, however, the tougher it’s gonna be to kill or modify.

Blagojevich used his amendatory veto powers to add the free rides provision. And even though people in both parties screamed bloody murder, the General Assembly didn’t dare knock down his AV. Seniors vote. And once you give them something, it’s politically dangerous to take it away.

The House has tried to come up with a compromise in the past to only give the free rides to the “truly needy,” but it’s been stopped in the Senate and Gov. Pat Quinn has threatened to veto it.

If they can reach a compromise in the coming months, then that could be a sign that the majority party is willing to stick their necks out on other items.

* Whether they’ll go this far is doubtful

While the lawmakers said the growing state budget deficit will make bailing out the transit agencies a low priority in the next legislative session, Madigan expressed support for raising the state motor fuel tax.

“I think we ought to raise that tax,” Madigan said at the symposium.

Madigan was the chief co-sponsor of House Bill 1 last year, which would’ve increased the motor fuel tax by 8 cents per gallon. The money would’ve been used for capital projects, but the House Republicans refused to go along and pushed video gaming instead. Raising the fuel tax partially for mass transit would require one heck of a huge compromise with Downstate legislators, to say the least.

* And we still don’t know for sure how the governor’s income tax increase will play out. Back in late July, Gov. Quinn seemed to say that he would veto anything other than his one percentage point tax hike


Quinn was attempting at the time to control the damage done by his budget director, who predicted to Bloomberg that the income tax would be hiked by two points in January, which would be double Quinn’s proposal.

* But a one point hike that includes property tax relief doesn’t do a whole lot to balance the state’s budget. And without further cuts, many legislators will be reticent to vote for any tax increase

While [GOP Rep. Mike Tryon] expected the tax increase to come during the fall veto session starting Nov. 16, [Democratic Rep. Jack Franks] said he expected it in January, just prior to the new General Assembly being seated. He said he didn’t think it would be successful.

“They’re asking for more money, but to do it without cuts and while keeping the same problems? Nobody in their right mind would vote for that, so I don’t think [Quinn] will get it passed,” Franks said.

Franks will never vote for a tax hike no matter how much the budget is cut. But he may not be too far off with that prediction of his.

* There are those who are attempting to look at the local tea leaves to claim that the citizenry is opposed to higher taxes

In this year’s election there were dozens of referenda on the ballot asking voters if they support or oppose local sales and/or property tax increases. Of the 37 tax increase referenda, only 16 passed. The levies were proposed to fund school facilities, municipal services, roadway construction, and other local government operations.

16 out of 37 is actually a pretty decent batting average, as far as recession-era tax hike referenda go. Hinsdale passed a sales tax increase, for example, as did Lake Zurich and even Macon County, where Bill Brady cleaned up. Even so, local sales and property tax referenda are different animals. I’m not sure there’s a direct comparison here.

  58 Comments      


Congratulations are in order

Tuesday, Nov 9, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller

* First up, Scott Reeder, who is a proud papa of a new baby…

Caitlin Roberta Reeder arrived at 8:09 a.m. today in St. John’s Hospital in Springfield. The 8 pounds 7 ounce newborn and her Mom are happy and healthy. Dad and big sisters Grace and Anna are proud as can be.

* Not trying to mix personal with business, but Illinois Review is due props of a different sort

Illinois Review is launching its 6th year of serving Illinois conservatives by providing news, commentary, discussion and events. We want to thank each of our generous Illinois Review contributors who’ve faithfully and graciously shared their thoughts and talents with us over the years.

We’re also thankful for all the faithful readers — from Springfield to Chicago, Metro East to Washington D.C. And we appreciate the support of fellow conservatives committed to the principles of limited government, individual rights, free markets and traditional values.

  Comments Off      


Question of the day

Tuesday, Nov 9, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller

* From Stateline.org

At least 30 states will be governed by a single-party when new lawmakers and governors are sworn in early next year. Last week’s election gave Republicans control of the legislature and the governor’s office in 20 states, up from nine. Democrats, who controlled 15 states, will see that number shrink to 10.

National map of one-party state governments before election day…

After election day…

* The Question: Considering that the Republicans could not take over either legislative chamber, the governor’s mansion or the Supreme Court during the greatest Republican wave since 1994 (and the largest GOP state legislative wave since 1928), and considering that the GOP will be completely shut out of the redistricting process for the first time since our new state Constitution was adopted, are Statehouse Republicans doomed here? If not, why? If so, for how long? Explain.

* Bonus Question: Either way, what should legislative Republicans do now?

  85 Comments      


Ignoring the millionaire in the room

Tuesday, Nov 9, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Subscribers already know what I found last week after talking to Bill Brady’s campaign and others about where and why Brady lost to Gov. Pat Quinn.

“Social issues” seems to be a big part of everyone’s post-election analysis, although I think I’ve pinpointed that aspect of it far more for subscribers.

* For instance, here’s Kent Redfield

Another surprise was Gov. Pat Quinn beating Republican Bill Brady. Redfield suspects that suburban Chicago voters were wood by Quinn’s political commercials that pushed Brady’s conservative views on guns, abortion, and education. Redfield said, “They did a good job of making Brady look scary.”

That was part of it.

* Sean Trende, a Senior Elections Analyst for RealClearPolitics, published a nifty little map. The counties in blue are those that Mark Kirk outperformed fellow Republican Bill Brady. The counties in red are those where Brady did better than Kirk…

And his resulting take

Looking at the counties where Brady ran behind Kirk, the most likely explanation is that the Democratic Governor’s Association’s advertisements emphasizing his socially conservative views took their toll. Even in a very red year, the state’s blue fundamentals took over in that race.

The DGA’s ads ran during the summer. They didn’t work. This is what happens when you write your analysis in DC and you only talk to fellow DC denizens who love to take credit for themselves.

* Bernie thinks that creationism and Sheila Simon were in the mix

What do Sheila Simon and creationism have in common? Each might be able to take some credit for helping Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn steer clear of the Republican wave that swept the nation Tuesday.

* Progress Illinois thinks it was the ground game which got black and Latino voters to the polls

Buoying Quinn and Simon’s likely successful election bid was strong support from minority voters. Statewide, African-Americans and Latinos cast an estimated 90 percent and 62 percent of their ballots, respectively, for the Democratic candidates according to a CNN exit poll.

62 percent of the Latino vote is pretty darned horrid. Rod Blagojevich took 83 percent of the Latino vote four years ago.

* But Greg Hinz and I are the only two who pointed out the obvious

[Brady’s] campaign team assumed that independent Scott Lee Cohen would pull votes from Mr. Quinn. Wrong. As I see it, any race involving an incumbent is a referendum on that incumbent, and any third candidate just splits the anti vote.

It’s more than just random third candidates, however. Keep in mind that Cohen spent a fortune on this race. He wasn’t your usual third party also-ran.

The Brady campaign told me a few months ago that they believed Cohen wouldn’t hurt them until he got more than 7 percent of the vote. I told them at the time that I thought they were wrong. They were.

Let’s take a look at just two suburban counties. In DuPage County, Mark Kirk won by 57,338 votes and Brady won by 44,812. Third party candidates received 14,491 votes in the US Senate race, but third partiers and Scott Lee Cohen combined to score 20,188 in the governor’s race.

Lake County saw the same thing. Kirk won by 36,247 and Brady won by 15,800. Third partiers got 9,451 US Senate votes and 15,148 gubernatorial votes.

This actually happened all over suburbia.

Lots of voters took a look at Quinn and decided they couldn’t be with him. But then they looked at Brady and, for various reasons (likely the social issues, subscribe for more detailed info on why) decided they couldn’t vote for him, either. So, they went with Cohen, who spent millions on TV, mail and radio.

I told you weeks ago that when Cohen’s name was included in the polling, Quinn significantly closed the gap on Brady. For weeks, I refused to even run Rasmussen’s poll numbers until they included Cohen’s name in their surveys for that very reason.

The Cohen factor was huge, yet it’s been almost wholly ignored out there.

Scott Lee Cohen hated Pat Quinn. He got into the governor’s race thinking he could destroy Quinn. In the greatest of all 2010 ironies, Cohen ended up playing a major role in electing Quinn.

I gotta wonder what he does for an encore.

Any guesses?

  67 Comments      


Between a Madigan and a tea party

Tuesday, Nov 9, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller

* I had heard this, but wasn’t able to confirm it last week, but Michael Sneed ran it

Contrasting styles: Dem Illinois House Speaker Mike Madigan spent the afternoon fielding the phones on Election Day in his 13th ward office . . . while Illinois House GOP leader Tom Cross played golf at Medinah Country Club in the northwest suburbs.

* And my syndicated newspaper column takes a look at a particularly sticky wicket

Without a doubt, the worst place to be right now in Illinois politics is the state’s House Republican caucus. Their leader Tom Cross went “all in” this year against House Speaker Michael Madigan and came up way short.

There were the innumerable planted newspaper stories about Madigan, including, for instance, how he apparently picked his own Republican challenger. The Republicans then staged a downtown Chicago “fundraiser” for Madigan’s invisible opponent.

Then there were the billboards along the Tollway ridiculing Madigan, which ginned up even more unflattering media coverage. Of course, there also were the countless mailers and TV ads claiming that Madigan was the real problem in Illinois.

That’s not to mention the hundreds of times Cross boldly predicted he would win the majority and finally put Madigan in his place. Madigan detested Cross before the election. It’s gone way beyond that now.

Maybe Cross truly believed he could take Madigan out. More likely, the boasting was a ruse to raise money from gullible rich Republican businessmen.

Maybe Cross figured that even if he didn’t win, Bill Brady surely would beat Gov. Pat Quinn, and then Cross would have someone to protect him and his members from Madigan’s retribution. A Brady win also would mean that Cross would have a chance at drawing the new legislative district map next year.

And maybe Cross concluded that even if he didn’t win and Brady lost, then at least Democratic Supreme Court Chief Justice Tom Kilbride would lose his retention battle because out-of-state business groups were spending cash hand over fist against him. With Kilbride out, the court would at least temporarily lose its Democratic majority and might be frightened into going along with any Republican lawsuit against a Democratic district map.

Well, not only is Cross still in the minority, he won’t have a Republican governor to backstop him. And Chief Justice Kilbride won - big.

Most of Cross’ members are loyal, but they have to be worried about their future. Legislators, like most humans, are mainly concerned with self-preservation. But the Quinn/Kilbride wins mean that Speaker Madigan will draw the new district map. And the power of the map means that some of those Republicans won’t be coming back in two years. One time-tested map trick is to draw two or more “enemies” into the same district. In other words, the Republicans need to hope that the housing market improves soon because some of them will have to find new digs.

The remap always hovers above everything in Springfield. During the last redistricting process in 2001, several state senators were in the secure computer room on Sept. 11. Planes were crashing, buildings were falling, but they were checking on their boundaries. That’s how important this is to them.

It’s no secret that Madigan is not the forgive and forget type. And he’s not above using something as important as the map to “urge” compliance with his wishes. There are a whole lot of crucial votes coming up during the next several months as the General Assembly attempts to dig the state out of this massive hole.

The Republicans have spent the past three years in open, hostile opposition to Madigan, with the situation degrading sharply over the past year or so. Many of those members are trying to figure out how they can best navigate the next couple of years and preserve themselves in the process.

It’s not that simple, though. Even if some of Cross’ members bow down to His Royal Highness in exchange for map crumbs, they have another, perhaps even more serious problem to ponder.

Several House Republicans have state facilities in their districts, so they naturally are more amenable to “revenue enhancements.” Others, particularly in the suburbs, have long been allies of the teachers unions. But many of those same members surely are worried what could happen to them if they vote with the Democrats. Forget Cross. I’m talking about the tea partiers.

Just look at what the tea partiers did to established Republicans in primaries all over the country this year. In Delaware, they beat the most respected Republican in the state with a bizarre candidate who eventually had to run TV ads assuring voters she wasn’t a witch. No way does Harry Reid go back to the U.S. Senate if Nevada Republicans had nominated their sane primary candidate.

Illinois’ next primary will be held in a little over 17 months. Whatever the Republicans do next year still will be fresh in angry voters’ minds.

I just wouldn’t want to be in their shoes right now.

* Related…

* Despite big wins, Illinois GOP fell short Tuesday: “The Democrats will be in the catbird seat,” said Christopher Mooney, professor of political studies with the Institute of Government and Public Affairs at the University of Illinois Springfield. “There’s nothing more important politically in a decade than redistricting. It’s the most political activity that a state does. It has huge implications for policy… This will be the first time under this constitution that a single party has controlled it,” Mooney said. “There’s no hat-pulling, there’s no long, drawn-out process.”

* Despite GOP wins, Democrats still control much of Illinois government: “I woke up the morning after and I thought, ‘Nothing’s different,’” said state Sen. Dave Luechtefeld, R-Okawville. “The same people are running the place.”

* Journal-Courier: Same old same old

* House Speaker Mike Madigan has work to do: Madigan’s critics — including some quiet ones in his own party — have long argued that politics and power, not policy, consume the speaker. But policy is what we’re desperate for in this economically depressed state. Bipartisan compromise and consensus would be a welcome relief. There is no one more knowledgeable or better positioned to achieve any of this than Mike Madigan.

* Lawmakers expected to consider drastically expanding gambling: State Sen. Terry Link (D-Vernon Hills) said he’s proposing a measure this week that would allow four new casinos - one in Chicago, another in an undetermined south suburban location, one in north suburban Park City and a fourth in downstate Danville. Advocates of expanded gambling haven’t confirmed where in the south suburbs a casino would be located, but opponents of the plan say Ford Heights is a likely target.

* Horse tracks hope to hit on slots: A plan that would allow slot machines at six Illinois racetracks is expected to be introduced in Springfield this week by Sen. Terry Link (D-Vernon Hills) as part of a gambling expansion package.

* State lawmakers weigh more gambling ahead of veto session

* Lawmaker: Gambling Expansion A Good Bet

* BGA To Lawmakers: Use Caution On Gambling

* Gov. Quinn: Put state income tax hike first

* Quinn: Election win ‘mandate’ for tax hike

* Gov. Pat Quinn’s mandate equals higher taxes in Illinois

* PJ Star: A ‘mandate’ for Gov. Quinn? Hardly

* Northwest Herald: No mandate on tax hike

* Sun-Times: Police, fire pensions need legislative 911

* llinois: We’ll take Wisconsin’s $810M in stimulus money

  85 Comments      


Morning Shorts

Tuesday, Nov 9, 2010 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Luis Gutierrez: Sun-Times’s Rezko story ‘false

* Rezko gave Gutierrez a deal on town house

* FBI interviewed Luis Gutierrez in 2008 about Rezko deal

* Key witness in Blago trial charged with shoplifting

* Retail good and bad: Vacancy drops, but so do rents

* Weis: City crime is down for 22nd straight month

* Burge sentencing postponed till Jan.

* Daley hopes to find new schools chief quickly

* Cook County tax rates generally stable

* Cook County property-tax bills expected to be flat in Chicago, slightly up in suburbs

* Daley’s last budget poised to sail through City Council

* Budget Committee OKs Mayor Daley’s $6.15 billion budget for 2011

* Daley’s $6B City Budget Gets Preliminary OK

* Standard & Poor’s lowers Chicago bonds

* Audit discovers firefighters falsified mileage claims

* Senator Durbin wants investigation into Metra pollution levels

* Clearing the air on Metra pollution

* Metra commuters may face health risks

* City Council Committee Approves Acid Ordinance Supported by Attack Victims

* Lee Enterprises reports continued growth in 4Q

* Kurtz resigns from MCC board

* Will County faces dilemma: Jobs or lower taxes?

* Aurora police union hires firm to probe city budgets

* Fourth candidate announces for Yorkville mayor

* Moline may raise garbage fee, as well as city administrator’s pay

* Quincy expects early retirement program to meet its $5.2 million goal

* Adams County budget deficit remains just over $1 million

* Macon County is poised to approve budget

* Enos Park master plan would cost $45 million over 10-20 years

* Sales tax boosters to reassess, maybe try again

* SJ-R: Don’t give up on sales tax hike for schools

* Ordinance will cost landlords $25 per unit in Collinsville

* Mayoral hopefuls’ sprint under way

* Coalition of black leaders backs Rep. Davis for mayor

* Meeks rips black mayoral search process

* Sweet: African American Chicago mayoral vote could be splintered

* Emanuel Will Announce Run Next Week

* Rahm Emanuel talks trash – in good way

* Rahm to lay out plans for growing Chicago jobs

* McQueary: Emanuel desperately needs a ‘beer summit’

* Mayoral Hopeful Pushes Old Idea: Abolishing City’s ‘Head Tax’

* Emanuel pitches phasing out head tax for businesses

* Miguel Del Valle Refutes Report He’s Interested in CPS Job

* Brown: Del Valle in mayoral race until very end

* Washington: Next mayor needs arts agenda

* Tax appeals commissioner won’t run for Chicago mayor

* ‘Party’s over,’ Preckwinkle vows

* State’s attorney investigating Batavia vote complaint

  3 Comments      


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